Elections were held for all the elective seats in Parliament following premature dissolution of this body in May 1994. General elections had previously taken place in May 1991.

Background and outcome of elections:

General elections had previously taken place in May 1991, as a result of which Mr. Teatao Teannaki was elected President of the Republic.

Three years later – i.e., one year before the normal expiry of the House of Assembly’s term – the parliamentary opposition passed a vote of no confidence in the Teannaki administration on the grounds of financial misconduct. Polling was set for July 1994 and, in the interim, executive power was entrusted to a three-member Council of State, which was for its part internally divided.

Altogether 260 candidates contested the 39 elective Assembly seats. They belonged to three distinct groups: the National Progressive Party (NPP), a loose association of politicians supporting similar policies who had ruled the country since its independence in 1979; the opposition Maneaban Te Mauri (MTM), likewise a loose alliance led by Mr. Roniti Teiwaki; and unaffiliated individuals.

The first round of voting (on 21/22 July) produced only seven outright winners, all of them from the MTM. Final results in the second round (28/29 July) gave the MTM a plurality over the NPP (which lost 12 seats), with 19 seats going to independents. On 30 September, Mr. Teburoro Tito of the MTM was elected President; he heads an 11-member Cabinet.